Al-Awda, The Palestine Right to Return Coalition, calls on its members,
supporters and all people of conscience to demand the immediate release of
Sameeh Hammoudeh who is being held prisoner at the Immigration and Customs
Enforcement (ICE) detention center in Bradenton, Florida. On 6 December
2005, a jury found Sameeh, a co-defendant in the Al-Arian case, not guilty
of all charges brought against him by the US government. Yet, as of this
date, he is still being held prisoner by the ICE.

Sameeh has also accepted and wishes to be deported to Ramallah, his hometown
in occupied Palestine. The ICE maintains that his detention is due to
refusal to permit his return to Ramallah, a claim which, according to the
St. Petersburg Times, has been denied by the Israeli authorities.

Since there is no legal basis for the continued detention of Sameeh
Hammoudeh, Al-Awda, The Palestine Right to Return Coalition, is asking all
of its members, supporters and people of conscience to write to Attorney
General Alberto Gonzales, Attorney General of the State of Florida Charlie
Crist and Florida Governor Jeb Bush demanding Sameeh Hammoudeh's immediate
release and his return home.

We also urge publicizing Sameeh's imprisonment by writing op-eds and letters
to the media highlighting the injustice he has been subjected to.

Talking Points:

* On 6 December 2005 a jury found Sameeh Hammoudeh not guilty of all
charges brought against him. Hence, there is no legal basis for
keeping him imprisoned by the Immigration and Customs
Enforcement Service. He should be released forthwith.

* Sameeh Hammoudeh wishes to return to his home in Ramallah, Palestine. By
holding him prisoner, the ICE is preventing him from exercising his
inalienable, natural and legal right to return to his home.

I remember when I was a teenager in Egypt (this is around the late sixties)discussing the problems of the country with my uncle. I was saying that what we

Message 2 of 2
, May 9, 2006

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I remember when I was a teenager in Egypt (this is around the late
sixties)discussing the problems of the country with my uncle. I was
saying that what we really needed was a strong but honest leader who
will whip the country into shape. My uncle answered: "we've just
tried that and it didn't work!". Of course he was referring to
Nasser. I will repeat the same referring to Ataturk. Just because we
like the politics of the dictator better does not make him any less
offensive.

As for rejecting the Ikhwan, while most of us do not support them this
is irrelevant. They do have a significant number of followers in Egypt
and are well organized. Ignoring or demonizing the large minority
they represent because we disagree with them will not work and is
frankly rather naive.

Sami Fadali

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